Hundreds of thousands of businesses have been prompted by the ATO to get started with their Single Touch Payroll provisions, and its project lead at the tax office believes the business community is better prepared than it was for last year’s deadline.

Assistant commissioner at the ATO John Shepherd thinks accountants, bookkeepers and their small business clients are better prepared for this deadline than they were for the first one in 2018, which applied to businesses with 20 or more employees.

“The knowledge levels have come up… bookkeepers are helping with that message and that preparation,” Mr Shepherd told Accountants Daily at the Accounting Business Expo on Wednesday.

Many software providers weren’t ready for last year’s deadline, which had a knock-on impact on the business community.

“Last year, a lot of the products were only just ready. This time, a lot more are ready, and they are ready with options for smaller employers,” Mr Shepherd said.